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Just Start Doing

This is the seventh installment of the Global Talent Spotlight, an in-depth look at employees from all over the globe who take their creativity to the next level. From street artists, singers and comedians to painters, authors and documentarians, our FCB family is full of amazingly interesting people who all have a story to share.

Living in London, I used to visit Magma bookshop when looking for inspiration. Flicking through the art, illustration, and design books was a favorite way to see what cool stuff was out there. I’d imagine how cool it would be to one day write my own book.

I was also hugely influenced by the amount of amazing street art there was. I always wondered who was doing it and what drove them? Shortly after, I realized all that really mattered was that they were doing it.

The most important thing is to just start. To stop thinking and dreaming and to actually pick up that pen and start writing, drawing, doing, whatever it may be. So I started, naively thinking I’d have it more or less done in a couple of months with a publishing deal in my hands. I’d never heard of the dreaded “slush pile.”

About six years in, I remember thinking to myself that this may well be the most monumental waste of time ever. I’d worked on my book most evenings, lunch breaks and weekends and still had nothing to show for it other than multiple rejection letters. But I didn’t give up because I believed in it.

In the end, it took over seven years to land a deal. It was a great feeling and such a huge sense of achievement when I got to hold my own book in my hands. The one piece of advice I’d pass on to anyone with their own dreams is to just start doing. It’s really that simple.

Spinfluence. The Hardcore Propaganda Manual for Controlling the Masses.

Written and illustrated by Nick McFarlane

Published by Carpet Bombing Culture

This hardcore propaganda manual contains everything you need to know about the art of spinning the truth and manipulating the masses. Included are fun activities such as Emotional Hijacking, Brainwashing and Hysteria-harnessing. A glorious and insightful read for anyone interested in how to exploit people for profit or power.